Highway-crossing signal



S. C. BRYANT.

HIGHWAY CROSSING SIGNAL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1917.

1379,6780 Y Patented. May 311 1921 INVENTOR c/Wgg UNHJEIJIGIBNSTAYFEQSSEUG SIGNAL To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, Sraxrnr C lBnrayr, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of the city of Chicago, in the county of Cook and Stateof Illinois, have invented a new and useful Highway-Croming Signal, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to signaling, particularly to railway signalingand more especially to that type of railway signal known as a highwaycrossing signal.

The invention consists in the constructions and arrangements set forthand described and claimed.

The principal object of the invention is the production of acomparatively simple,

inexpensive and reliable signal for location 'at the crossing of ahighway and a railway track for the purpose of warning those on thehighway about to cross the railway whether or not a train or car isapproaching the highway crossing of the railway.

@ther objects and advantages will appear as the description of theinvention progresses. and the novel features of the invention will beparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Tn describing the invention in detail, reference is had to theacompanying drawing, wherein T have illustrated a prefe physicalembodiment of my invention, and wherein like characters of referencedesignate correspfi parts throughout the several views, and in which 7Figure l is a diagraatic sketch showing my invention; Fig. 2, is a frontview of the signal banner of my invention.

AS is well Mowinto those fast in the art to which this inventionrelates, a closed track circuited trachway is most coonly employed asthe means for l. a highway cro Signal- In 1, applicant has shown asection of trackway composed of the two rails l and 2. Across one end ofthis section a battery 3 of any well hown and appropriate form has beenconnected. Across the other end of the section the well known relay 4Lhas been connected, as lgy wires 5 and 6. The battery, the rails and therelay together form the well known clfmach-circuited trackway.

4 -en no train or part of a is upon the rails 1 and 2, the relay 4 isenergized and consequently holds its ature 'K in the Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented May 311, 1921..

Application filed July 21!), 191?. genial lilo. 131,712.

upper position as shown. The presence of a tram or'any part of a trainupon the track rails l and 2 causes, in the well lmown manner, thedeenergization of relay 4 and the dropping of armature Z so that itmakes contact with wire 8.

Applicants signal banner proper, 9, a.

front view of which is shown in Fig. 2 and an end view in Fig. l, ismounted on a horizontal .shaft 10, arranged to be supported andoseillatein the bearing member 11. It is well understood by those skilled in theart to which this invention relates that highway crossing signals arelocated in close promimity to. the crossing for which they are'used as asignal and in such position as to be not only readily visible but ifpossible such that they command attention. Applicamts signal banner hastwo positions: one, in which the banner is shown in Fig. l, in which thehorizontal shaft supporting the banner is designated 10, in whichposition the front face of the banner, as shown in Fig. 2, is faceddirectly downward and the rear face directly upward so that as thebanner in section is an elongated diamond shape, as shown by Fig. 1,there is practically onlyan edge presented to one approachthe bannerfrom either the right or the left as viewed in l; the other position ofthe her, as shown by F 2, is that in which the banner has beenoscillated ninety degrees from the-position shown m Fig. 1, that is, sothat a word as, Stop,

. formed on both sides of the banner, is visible to one approachingeither from the right or the left as yiewed in l.

' There are then two positions of the arrest-ive banner 9; one which maybe called way as a train may be just about to cross the highway.

In order to oscillate the banner applicant has provided a motor 12,which has the usual rotating shaft 13. upon which is fiaedly mountfi asmall gear wheel M. Gear wheel 14: meshes with gear wheel 15, which isentrant ounce. I

fixedly mounted on shaft 16, which also has small gear wheel 17 fixedlymounted thereon. Gear wheel 1? meshes with gear wheel 18 mounted torotate on shaft 19.

Gear wheel 18' has a crank pin20 protruding from the face thereof. Alink 21 is connected at one end to crank pin 20, and at the other end toa crank pin 22, protruding from an operating arm 23, which isoscillatably mounted on the shaft 24L.

Operating arm 23, at its upper end, has fixedly mounted thereon a magnet25, which may be at times energized by a flow of electricitytherethrough. Tn operative relation with the upper end or one pole ofthe magnet 25 is positioned an armature 26 fastened- 111 any well knownmanner, as integrally, with clutch arm 2?. This arm 2? together with arm23 and magnet 25 which is positioned on an extension of 23 form atwo-part clutch. the parts of which are held together at times byenergizing magnet 25.

The clutch arm 27 is formed into a hub at the lower end and isoscillatably mounted on shaft 24:. The clutch arm has attached theretothe weight 28 for a purpose to be described. the insulating projection29 for operation of contact finger 3'0 and operating link 31 which isconnected to operatin crank 32 which in turn is fixedly mounte onhorizontal shaft 10, best shown in Fig. 2.

With all parts in the positions as shown in Fig. 1. that is with crankpins 20 and 22 in line with the center of shaft 19, any force exerted onlink 21 would not tend to rotate gear wheel 18 and even if such atendency existed no movement of 18 could take place by reason of brakeblock 51. to be later dellf under such conditions the magnet 25 isenergized then banner 9 will be held in the position as shown, that is.in the non-visible position. which corresponds with the absence of atrain from the section composed of rails 1 and 2 and the energizedcondition of relay 4. so that one approaching the signal would receiveno warning, fur thermore. under such conditions no warning is needed. Itbeing understood that the section composed of track rails 1 and 2 wouldbe so located. as is well understood by those skilled in the art towhich this invention relates. that a train approaching the crossingwould enter the section before arriving at the crossing.

If. while all parts were in the positions and condition as illustratedby Fig. 1. a train or car should enter upon track rails 1 and 2. then asis well understood. the relay & would be deenergized and its armature 7would fall so as to break contact with wire 33 and make contact withwire 8. This movement of armature 7 would result in deenergizing magnet25. because the circuit including magnet 25 and battery 3lwould bebroken The circuit which is called the retaining in the visible orcaution position thus indicating to one approaching the crossing that atrain or car may also be approaching the crossing so giving the warningso, desirable and in fact absolutely necessary in such a case.

When clutch arm 27 is allowed to oscillate as hereinbefore described.the insulating projection 29 is so moved that conductive contact finger30 is allowed to fall in contact with wire 41.

If the train which caused banner 9 to move to the visible positionpasses oil from the rails 1 and 2 then relay a will again be energized.as is well understood, and armature 7 will be raised to contact withwire 33. Immediately this occurs an operating circuit will be formed asfollows-positive terminal of battery 34. wire 35. armature 7, wires 33and 42. motor 12. wire 43. brake magnet 4-1. wire 41, conductive contactfinger 30 and wires 45 and 39 to the negative terminal of the battery34.

It will be noted that the operating circuit includes brake magnet 44.This brake magnet has. in proximity to the upper end of its core 46. anarmature 17 which is suspended from a brake lever 48. pivoted at $9 andspring pressed upwardly by the expansion spring 50 the lower end ofwhich bears against a fixed point. The brake lever 48 on the right ofits .pivot has attached thereto a brake block 51. which bears againstthe periphery of a disk-like part forming a brake-drum forming part ofthe armature 52 of the motor 12 when the brake lever is pressed upwardlyby the spring 50 so as to prevent rotation of the armature. When theoperating circuit above traced is formed however. the armature .47 ismoved downwardly and the brake block 51 upwardly so that the armatureand shaft of the motor are. free to rotate.

The operating circuit above traced.when the brake block 51 is moved outof contact with the armature causes thev armature and shaft of the motorto rotate and through the train of gears 14; 15, 17 and 18 causes link21 to pull the lower end of operating arm 23 downwardly and the upperend upwardly so that the magnet 25 thereon comes in contact witharmature 26 which had previously been separated therefrom by the passageof a train onto rails l and 2. Under the conditions aed, that is withrelay '4 energized, the magnet 25 be energized by the reta r 1' mycircuit herein before described, consmuently, when arm 23 begins todescend due to the passage of crank pin 20 through more than one hundredeighty degrees of arc, it will drag armature 2t and clutch arm 27 withit so that banner 9 through c 32 and 31 be moved toward the positionshown in l. During the movement, insulated projection 29 contact withconductive contact linger 30 and by properly positio lated projection 29the conductive a .1 1"

30 can he made to break contact with wire 29 and so break the operatingcircuit at genergized the armature 7 falls and makes i and 39 to thenegative s in contact with wire 8 so that a circuit for illuminat thelamp is formed as follows: positive terminal of battery 34 wire 35,armature 7, wire 8, 1p 53 and wires 54, 38

teal ot the battery 34L.

It should be noted that a failure of either the track battery 3 oroperating battery 34: or any of their connections result in displayingthe visible position of the banner 9 because either of these occurrencesresults in deenergizing maet 25. In fact the bias of the banner byreason of weight 28 is to the visible position so that all failures areon the safe side that is to tend to cause the banner to be rotated tovisible position. It be well understood by those t ed in the art towhich the invention relates that upon'a failure in this class ofapparatus the exhibition of a caution signal is the best practice.

Although I have particularly described the construction or one physicalembodiment of my invention, and explained the operation and principlethereof, neverthe leg, I desire to have it understood that the till toselected is mfierely illustrative, but does not exhaust the possiblephysical embodiments of the idea of means underl my invention.

' at l claim as new and desire to se} cure by Letters Patent of theUnited States,

1. In a railwayhighway or signal, in combination: a ber formed with aface of distinctive and arrestiveappearance navaeve distinctive andnon-arrestive appearance and of comparatively slight extent; anoscillatable clutch arm having a normal bias; means connecting theclutch arm and the banner whereby when the clutch arm assumes its biasedposition it will cause the banner to exhibit the face; an oscillatableoperating arm; means for clamping together the operating arm and theclutch arm whereby the clutch arm cannot move in response to its biasexcept by a correspondmg movement of the operating arm and banner toexhibit the face; an oscillatableoperating arm: means for oscillatingsaid operating arm to contact with said clutch arm when said clutch armis in biased position; means for clamping together the clutch arm andoperating arm when they contact whereby further movement oi, theoperating arm moves the clutch arm correspondingly, the said secondmentioned means oscillating the operating arm to such an extent that thesaid banner exhibits the edge.

3. lln in combination; a banner formed with a face of distinctive andarrestive appearance and extent and practically an edge ofnondistinctive and non-arrestive appearance and of comparatively slightextent; an cecillatable clutch arm having a normal bias; meansconnecting the clutch arm and the banner whereby when the clutch armassumes its biased position it will cause the banner to exhibit theface; an oscillatable operating arm; means for oscillating saidoperating arm to contact with said clutch arm when said clutch arm is inbiased position; a. magnet attached to the operating arm; an armatureattached to the clutch arm; means for energizing the magnet whereby whenthe said operating arm and a railway highway crossing signal,

clutch contact they will be clamped together magnetically wherebyfurther movement of the operating arm moves the clutch armcorrespondingly, the said second mentioned means oscillating theoperating arm to such a3 extent that the said banner exhibits the e ge.P p

t. In a railway highway crossing signal, in combination; a banner formedwith a lace ct distinctive and a 'restive appearance banner to exhibitthe face; an oscillatable operating arm; means foroscillating saidoperating arm to contact with said clutch arm when said clutch arm is inbiased position; a magnet attached to the operating arm; an armatureattached to the clutch arm; means for energizing the magnet whereby whenthe said operating arm and clutch contact they will be clamped togethermagnetically whereby further movement of the operating arm moves theclutch arm correspondingly, and means controlled by the clutch armwhereby further oscillation of the operating arm ceases when the clutcharm reaches a position in which the said banner exhibits the said edge.

5. In a railway highway crossing signal, in combination: a banner formedwith a face of distinctive and arrest-ive appearance and extent andpractically an edge of non-distinctive and non-arrestive appearance andof comparatively slight extent; an oscillatable clutch arm having anormal bias; means connecting the clutch arm and the banner whereby whenthe clutch arm as sumes its biased position it will cause the banner toexhibit the said face; an oscilnerae'ze contact with the clutch arm whenthe clutch.

arm is in biased position; a circuit for said motor; a source of currentincluded in said circuit; a circuit controller in said circuit whichwhen closed closes the circuit for said motor; a brake magnet in saidcircuit; a brake block controlled by said brake magnet and preventingoperation of said motor when said circuit is open but allowing operationof said motor when said circuit is closed; "means connecting theoperating arm and the motor whereby anoperation of the motor causes anoscillation of the operating arm when the brake block does not preventmovement of the motor; a magnet attached to the operating arm; acircuitincluding said magnet and a source of energy; an armatureattached to the clutch arm whereby when the operating arm and the clutcharm contact they will be held together magnetically whereby furthermovement of the operating arm will move the clutch arm correspondinglymeans controlled by the clutch arm for opening the circuit including themotor and the brake magnet whereby further oscillation of the operatingarm ceases when the clutch arm reaches a position in which the saidbanner exhibits the said edge and means for controlling the circuit forenergizing the magnet and the circuit including the motor.

STANLEY CHARLES BRYANT.

